Fairbanks and the Arctic Circle

The trip to the Arctic Circle was our main purpose when going to Fairbanks - and it was exciting! A hot day that allowed us to keep our coats in the bus - who would have imagined?

Quick Tips:

Fairbanks, like Alaska in general, is expensive. It's advisable to book things in advance, especially if your schedule is tight.

Best Way To Get Around:

I highly recommend a rental car. Buses and trains are available, but some places are not so easily reached - plus the scenery is so breathtaking that you have to stop every second for photographs!

We were very disappointed with the highly priced accommodations in Fairbanks until we found this great B&B. They have many kinds of rooms, some very luxurious, but we stayed in a cottage. Breakfast is superb and the owners let you feel at home. Their website is at http://www.alaska.net/~gables7/

DO NOT STAY THERE!

I had contacted them by fax, as they were listed in Frommer''s guide, but when we got there we didn''t like what we saw. There were strange people that looked drunk or drugged sitting at the open doors of their rooms. The receptionist told us that they put natives on the first floor because they cause trouble, while upper rooms, which were more expensive, were safer.

Knowing now of a place like 7 Gables Inn were we ended up staying and paying even less, there is no reason to stay in such a place.

Considered the best salmon restaurant in Alaska, the Pump House was reconstructed in 1978 and designated at the National Register of Historic Places. It is decorated with authentic gold rush era relics. It recreates the atmosphere of gold fever that drew prospectors from the Klondike to the rich gold fields of Interior Alaska.

When in Fairbanks, one cannot miss Denali National Park and Preserve, established in 1917 as Mount McKinley National Park, after a campaign led by Charles Sheldon, a naturalist. Curiously, Mt. McKinley was not included in the park boundary. The name changed in 1980, at the same time the park boundary was extended, more than tripling its area, now including the entire Mount McKinley massif. It also became a International Biosphere Reserve.

Cars are only allowed in a restrict area of the park and so buses must be used to travel along the park's main road. This is a way to reduce the impact of vehicles in such a delicate environment. We read that other parks, like Yosemite, may introduce this system in the future. Only part of the seats are sold in advance and we bought our on our way to Fairbanks.

We took the longest trip, to Wonder Lake, 11h total, and the bus stops at certain special places and whenever animals are seen. We saw Dall sheep, caribous, moose, and others, but the great excitement were the grizzly bears - they crossed the road right next to the bus.

Every night there are presentation at the park's auditorium and at camping sites. There are also ranger-led hikes and exhibition of the park's huskies.

Special lodges are available in remote areas of the park, reached only by plane - but these are very expensive

Ever wanted to know where Santa Claus works and lives? They say it's here in North Pole, AK, 20 miles SE of Fairbanks. After having taking a picture with Santa Claus himself, I got lost inside the shop, with so many cute souvenirs and Christmas decorations. I ended up buying a plush toy - a moose. Children of all ages will enjoy this stop.

Meeting at 7am, we were 22 passengers in a small bus, with one guy as our driver and guide. The the first stop was at the Carlsons' Trading Post for an overview of an Alaskan homestead. On Dalton Highway, an unpaved road built for the construction of the trans-Alaska pipeline, we could see the pipeline and the pump stations along the road and even stopped for a closer look at the pipeline, which is 800 miles long, from the production areas in Prudhoe Bay to the port of Valdez at Prince William Sound.

We had a picnic by Yukon river, with sandwiches and cookies. It was over 30°C there! Still going north, trees became rare and we saw the tundra: short vegetation, starting to bloom in the short springtime.

At about 4 pm we finally arrived at the Arctic Circle! I was the first on the bus to step on the red carpet the guide had spred in front of the mark. Everyone took photos and then we had cake to celebrate the occasion.

On our way back to Fairbanks, we stopped for a "tundra walk". The soil was completely covered by plants and it was a strange sensation to step on it, as it gives way with our weight. Digging a little bit, we found the permafrost - an ice layer that exists at the Arctic region, right under the soil.

We stopped for dinner at a restaurant by Yukon river, then again at the Trading Post for refreshments, arriving at Fairbanks at midnight, where we received our Arctic Circle Adventure certificates.

The company's website is at http://www.alaskasarctic.com/